Scars Aren't Always Permanent
by pendragon781
Summary: When Tony Stark agreed to let a couple of teenagers into the Avengers Initiative, nobody expected exactly how much trouble they would be, or how much they'd grow attached to them.
1. Enter From Stage Right

Tony scanned through the files Fury had given to him to read. The two people the files discussed were intriguing, but not enough as to where Tony would want them on the team. They were young, and he didn't want the responsibility of having to care of them on his hands.

It wasn't until he reached the section about their parents that he even considered Fury's proposition. Tony's eyes widened as he read about the children's parents and their treatment of the girls. He clenched his hands into fists and put the files down.

Now, Tony wasn't one to be sentimental over people he didn't even know. He hadn't been that way even before his time in that cave, and that particular part of his personality hadn't completely changed. However, he couldn't help but feel a bit sad for the file subjects.

Fury had told him to make the final decision as to whether or not the girls would be allowed to join the team (though Tony had a feeling it wasn't really his choice), and before he could regret it, he picked up the phone to call Steve.

It rang twice before it was answered.

"Hello?"

"Natasha? Where's Steve?"

"He's right here; he forgot how to answer the phone."

"Well put him on!"

"Okay, geez!"

A short silence.

"Hi, Tony."

"Why do you have a cell phone if you don't pick it up in an emergency?"

"I'm sorry, I couldn't remember how! It's weird…"

"Okay just get the team back home. We've got a lot to talk about…"

"Are we sure he gave us the right address?" Jules asked, looking back and forth from the paper in her hand to the tower in front of her. Peri nodded beside her.

"Stark's file did say he has a flair for dramatics," she said.

"Peri, I think that's an understatement," Jules gestured to the tower, "does Director Fury seriously expect us to live in there?!" Peri shrugged.

"Well, it's a bit gaudy, but nothing too grotesque. Besides, it's not like we have anyone to invite over for a birthday party," Peri pointed out. The two girls sighed. "Are you ready for this, Jules?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," and with that, they joined hands and walked forwards to enter Stark Tower.

"I'm not sure about this, Tony…" Steve said slowly.

"Come on, Steve, they're teenagers! How bad can they be?" Tony answered.

"Tony, have you ever taken care of a kid?" Natasha asked.

"As a matter of fact Natasha, I once babysat Pepper's nephew," responded Tony.

"Uh huh; and how well did that go?" she replied sarcastically.

"I'm Tony Stark! I'm a genius; I can take care of a kid easily!"

"Yeah, sure. But what about two kids, Tony? Two teenage kids?" Steve added.

"They're teenagers, they just want to have fun!"

"Might I add that they are also female?" JARVIS spoke from above.

"Hey, you're supposed to be on my side!"

"Tony, JARVIS has a point, you don't exactly work well with emotion, and seeing as how they're teenage girls, they'll get pretty emotional at least once a month," said Natasha.

"On top of that Tony, they were raised by S.H.I.E.L.D. for fifteen years. I don't think they fall under the category of 'normal teenagers.' If anything they'll probably be a lot like Clint and I," she continued. Steve sighed, and Tony groaned.

"You guys are taking all the fun out of this! Come on Steve, you told me just last week you always wanted kids!" Steve blushed as Tony went on, "besides, after all that time in S.H.I.E.L.D. I think they just want to be kids. You know, live the childhood they never had, or some other psychiatric bullshit."

"Sir, the adolescents in question are waiting on the first floor for access to the elevator," JARVIS interrupted the conversation. He pulled up camera footage of the two girls standing next to each other. Natasha studied them. From the way they were standing she gathered that they were very close emotionally. The blue-haired girl kept looking around like she was making a mental map of the area and the redhead seemed to be watching the blue-haired one to make sure she was breathing.

"Let them up JARVIS," Tony said. The camera showed the elevator doors opening and the two girls walking through. The blue-haired one tripped but caught herself. The doors closed and the three adults (and JARVIS) sat in silence for the girls to arrive.

Not even thirty seconds later, Jules stepped out of the elevator with Peri in tow. She took in their surroundings quickly and then faced the "responsible adults" in the room.

"Hi, I'm Jules, and this is my twin, Peri," Jules introduced them. Peri looked up and waved with a small smile.

"Twin? I thought Periwinkle was six months older," Steve mumbled to himself. Jules gave a small chuckle.

"She is, but we're so close we might as well be twins, so we refer to ourselves as twins. Um, so, who're you guys?" Jules explained.

"Oh, uh," Steve stood and walked over to the "twins" so he could shake their hands. "I'm Steve Rogers, it's a pleasure to meet the two of you, and" he pointed to Tony, "that's Tony Stark-"

Tony scoffed.

"I need no introduction! I'm sure they know who I am!" At this point Peri actually smiled all the way.

"Yes, sir," she said. Tony shuddered.

"Don't call me sir. The only person who can call me 'sir' is JARVIS, and he's a machine. If I have to live with a seventeen-year-old calling me 'sir,' I may have to puke." Steve rolled his eyes.

"Don't tell me it makes you feel old, Tony," he teased.

"Just don't call me sir!"

"Um, alright, Mr-" Tony winced before Peri could finish, "I mean, um,"

"Just Tony is fine, kid."

"Okay, Tony."

"Tony, you're making the poor girl nervous on the first day of the job, can you try not to be yourself for just a few days?" a woman asked. She turned to Peri and Jules, standing and walking to them much like Steve. She smiled and extended her hand. "I'm Natasha Romanov."

_Oh, I see what she's trying to do;_ Jules thought as she pulled Peri a little closer to her side, _well, two can play at that game. _She put on her brightest smile and shook Natasha's hand firmly.

"Gosh, you must be the famous Black Widow! We've heard so much about you!" Jules said in the peppiest voice she could muster. Natasha looked confused for only half a second, but her face retained its motherly expression.

"Yes, I am," she answered.

"We're big fans, Miss Romanov," Jules continued to smile brightly. Natasha actually let her shocked expression show this time, but before she could answer, another voice joined the group.

"Well if it isn't the Dynamic Duo!"

Peri and Jules shifted their gazes towards a man entering from another elevator on the other side of the room. He was smiling, but it wasn't faked like Natasha's smile.

"From what I've read, you two are one hell of a pair," he said, striding towards them, "I'm Clint Barton."

Jules gave a genuine smile and reached for his hand to shake.

"Jules Bennet. This is my Peri. Peri Marie." Clint shook her hand and then Peri's. He chuckled a bit.

"I have to say, you're less intimidating in person. How'd you get that scar above your lip, Jules?" Jules reached up and touched the scar and shrugged.

"Long story."

"Hey Tony when are the- Oh, they're already here. Um, hi, I'm Bruce Banner." A tired-looking man came from the same elevator Clint had just stepped out of and didn't move. He stared at the "twins," seemingly trying to decide whether or not the two adolescents were an immediate threat.

"Hello, Dr Banner," said Jules.

"Pleasure to meet you," said Peri. Banner nodded and stepped out into the room. Jules did a quick head count.

"If you don't mind me asking, where's Thor?" she said. Peri gave her hand a knowing squeeze and Jules shot Peri a look that said very plainly "if you say a word I'll shoot you."

"He's in Asgard, making sure his brother doesn't escape," Tony answered. Peri cocked an eyebrow.

"Escape? He helped defeat Malekith, didn't he? Why is he still being treated like a prisoner?" Clint looked at Peri harshly.

"One act of kindness does not redeem him for the amount of lives he took in the attack on New York," he said without a hint of compassion. Peri gulped and shrank a little, instantly regretting having spoken. Jules held her hand a bit tighter as she spoke.

"So," she said a tad too loudly, "who's hungry?"

**Meanwhile in Asgard**

Thor sighed before knocking quietly three times on the door to Loki's room. A second of silence followed, until Thor heard a soft "come in" from within. Thor pushed the door open as gently as he could and entered Loki's room.

"Has there been any change?" he asked. Frigga shook her head.

"I'm afraid not, my son. Not a soul has a clue..." she broke out in a sob, causing her eldest son to walk across the room and scoop her into a hug.

"It will be fine, Mother... Loki will be fine..."


	2. Trying To Cope

"So is it just me, or does any of this smell fishy to you?"

"To be quite honest, I smell nothing but the scent of rosemary. Ow!" Peri rubbed the spot on her nose that had just been hit with Jules' pillow. "I didn't know these things could actually cause physical pain."

"That's what you get for being a smart-ass, bitch."

"Jerk."

The two girls smiled at each other from their beds on opposite sides of the room. Jules had been sitting on the edge of her bed calmly, reading a book while Peri unpacked her suitcase. They had almost an entire half hour of silence before Jules had spoken and Peri had been greeted with a fluffy pink pillow to the face.

"So seriously, you're not getting any weird vibes from this?"

"Of course I am, Jules, but there is a _slight _chance there's nothing wrong."

"Peri, Fury didn't call us here because he was worried about our social lives. He's not like a regular parent. Something's up."

"Can you possibly not end your sentences in a preposition? Ow, where are you getting all these pillows? You only brought two suitcases, and one of them was filled with naught but shoes!"

"I could always throw a shoe at you if it makes you feel better."

"No thanks."

"Thought so."

Peri turned around again and began to unpack her already unpacked case. She kept up this pretence for a good ten minutes while Jules lay back on her bed with her eyes closed. After Peri had rearranged her socks in their drawer for the third time, she bit her lip and decided to voice the thought that had been eating away at her.

"Do you really think something is wrong?" she asked quietly. Jules sat up on her bed again.

"I don't see how there couldn't be. Like I said, Fury doesn't care if we're the only people we talk to."

"Oh well," Peri started, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "it's not like I was hoping to make friends with _normal kids_ this year." The two girls burst out into laughter. When it subsided, they took a few moments to catch their breath before Jules spoke again.

"So what time is your appointment tomorrow?" she looked at Peri just in time to see her smile fade.

"…Ten-thirty."

"We should get some sleep then."

"…Yeah… We should."

They dressed themselves for bed in silence and didn't speak again until after they had brushed their teeth, just to say "good night."

In an unexpected twist, Peri woke up before Jules the next morning. She looked over to her friend and got out of bed as quietly as possible. She changed her clothes in the bathroom and brushed her teeth before going into the kitchen to get some breakfast.

She met Clint and Bruce in the kitchen. Clint was leaning against the counter, nursing a cup of coffee and blinking the sleep from his eyes while Bruce sat at the table with a newspaper and his cup of camomile tea. Bruce looked up when she entered.

"Good morning, Peri," he said.

"Morning, Dr Banner, Agent Barton," she said in response. Clint nodded in acknowledgement. He yawned and drained his cup in one long gulp. He then mumbled something incomprehensible and walked out. Peri looked at Bruce for clarification. He merely shrugged.

"I'd love to say I have a translator but I don't," he joked. Peri gave him a small smile and turned to the toaster to pop in some bread. While she waited for her bread to finish, she leaned against the counter and examined Bruce. There were circles under his eyes, his hair was a mess, and his shoulders seemed to sag with some unseen burden. Of course, his affliction was known to the world. There was hardly a soul he could hide from, a minimal amount of people he could pretend to be normal with. Peri's heart went out to him.

_He can't even hide the fact that he's a freak,_ she thought, _he has to live with it being in the open, and there's nothing he can do about it. I should consider myself lucky. At least _I _have a chance of cure._

The toaster took this opportunity to release its grainy prisoners into the wild. Peri, not expecting it, jumped. Bruce chuckled. Jules entered on the left, half way dressed with her hair tossed into a sloppy bun and a clean sock hanging from her teeth, trying to shimmy a shoe onto her right foot without falling. She stopped short when she saw Peri in the kitchen with food.

"Hey," Peri said casually, "want any food of some sort?"

There was a slightly awkward silence as Jules glared at her friend.

"Yesh," she answered eventually, and Peri was impressed she could speak so clearly with a sock dangling from her lips.

The two girls left for Peri's appointment at precisely 9:15 AM. They wouldn't have gone so early if they had already known the subway system.

"At least Fury got Doctor Perris to move all the way out here to New York. I'd hate to get familiar with a new doctor, besides, this way, we won't have to wait for anyone to get used to your case."

"Yeah, sure."

Jules sighed.

"Peri, I know you hate being sick, but at least you're not Hazel."

"Can we not discuss that book right now?"

"The world is not a wish-granting factory, Peri."

"Seriously, one more quote, and I might actually have to punch you."

"I will not deny myself the pleasure- ow!"

"I told you not to quote that book."

"Bitch."

"Jerk."

The girls smiled at their new reference and walked down the staircase to the subway. They caught the first possible train to Brooklyn (which left at precisely 9:53) and when they stopped, Peri walked off with that fast-walking gonna-throw-up gait she had learned to perfect in the past two years. Jules was waiting for her when she walked back out of the bathroom.

"You alright?" Peri simply nodded.

The visit to Doctor Perris was uneventful, although they did end up scheduling a session for chemotherapy. Peri couldn't hide the look on her face, and when they left, she had to complain about it.

"Do you even understand how grotesque chemo even is? They stick a needle _in your arm_ and let it sit there for a ridiculous amount of time. Then of course it had the most ludicrous symptoms and absolutely _no way_ to get your hair back-"

"Peri, the chemo is just until the doctors can find a more permanent solution, it's good for you."

Peri huffed and said nothing. There was a precisely five minute period of silence.

"So why were you so panicked this morning?" Peri asked.

"Um…" Jules sighed, "I was worried about you."

"Yeah?" Peri started suspiciously. "In what way, precisely?"

"I… I was worried you ran away again."

"Do you _really _think I'd do that after what happened last time?"

"No, but it was more likely than you waking up to go the doctor early." Peri huffed again and picked up the pace. Almost immediately she pitched forwards. Jules caught her around the waist. "Smooth."

Peri leaned her head against Jules shoulder and groaned.

"Nauseas?" Jules asked. Peri nodded.

"Maybe we should take a cab."

Peri scrunched her nose and shook her head gently.

"The subway?"

Peri repeated the nose-scrunching.

"I guess I just have to carry you back, then."

"I can walk," Peri mumbled, before attempting to do so. She took about half a step before losing her balance again. Jules caught her and simply scooped her up into her arms before continuing the voyage home.

She ended up carrying her blue-haired companion all the way up to what was referred to by Tony as the living room, and by Jules, the lobby. The redhead set Peri down on the soft couch as gently as possible, then went into the kitchen to get some water for the both of them.

"Oh, hi, Steve," she said as she entered. He looked up from his book as she spoke.

"Hi, Jules."

"Why are you reading in the kitchen?"

"Oh, um," he looked down at his book bashfully, "I guess I just got kind of side-tracked. I came in here for a soda pop, sat down for a second, and just…"

"Trailed off?"

"Yes," he looked up at Jules and gave her a hesitant smile. "So where were you and your 'twin' all day? Acquainting yourselves with the city?"

"Um… Yeah, totes."

Steve's face grew a confused expression, he seemed about to ask her what exactly she meant by "totes" when a shout was heard from Peri's general vicinity. Jules and Steve both ran in to see what was wrong, and were greeted by a sight neither would have thought they'd ever see.

Thor was crying on the couch next to Peri. The teenager had her arm wrapped around his shoulders in a vain attempt to comfort him from whatever was wrong, and she sent Steve and Jules a look that said very clearly "help me."

"Um, Thor?"

Thor looked up at the sound of his name.

"Steven," he said sombrely. He rose from his seat and walked to where Steve stood. He embraced him firmly with what Jules would refer to as a manly hug of manliness that left poor Steve hardly any room to breathe.

"What's the problem?" he gasped out.

Thor sobbed.

"Thor?"

Thor mumbled something incomprehensible into Steve's shoulder.

"Thor, speak, please."

Thor chose this moment to pull away.

"It's Loki," he said slowly, "he's dead."


End file.
